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The esperanto 'r'

de Purrfecdizzo, 2013-aŭgusto-28

Mesaĝoj: 11

Lingvo: English

Purrfecdizzo (Montri la profilon) 2013-aŭgusto-28 21:35:08

As a native English speaker, I am really struggling with this sound. Either I end up with a rather soft English-sounding 'r' sound, or I get a trilled 'r' sound, but either way, I know I sound way off. I know that I am new to the language and maybe I am expecting too much, but I figure that I ought to try to correct pronunciation problems early on so they don't develop into long-term problems that are harder to correct later on. Any other English speakers stuggle with this?
Thanks

Purrfecdizzo (Montri la profilon) 2013-aŭgusto-28 21:42:26

Now that I think about it, I find that sometimes, I can get the sound right. I do OK in words like tre, but I have a hard time with 'r's preceding a vowel.. i.e.,

'mi farti bone'

I can't get it right, it sounds heavily accented.

RiotNrrd (Montri la profilon) 2013-aŭgusto-28 21:49:10

Purrfecdizzo:Any other English speakers stuggle with this?
Like, totally.

My mouth might, might make the sound if I work at it and the surrounding sounds support it. But most of the time, I just can't do it at all.

I do think that it is important to try as best you can to make all of Esperanto's sounds. But, it is just as important not to stress out about it if you can't, because Esperanto does allow quite a bit of latitude, and if you just can't do it (like me) that's perfectly fine. The inability to pronounce any particular sound should not discourage anyone from learning Esperanto.

If you can do it, you should. Always strive to speak as correctly as possible. But... if you can't, you can't, and if that's the case, then don't. People might misunderstand you on occasion, but, you know, they can always ask you to repeat yourself.

Paulinho (Montri la profilon) 2013-aŭgusto-29 01:01:07

I teach English here in my country. I always say to my students that my pronunciation is not perfect and they should listen to native speakers to enhance their own way of speaking. Some sounds in other languages are really awful. I have a lot of difficulties with these sounds of yours like world, work, word, worse, etc. So take it easy, improve your pronunciation as much as possible. But if at the end you find out some troubles remain... join the club.

sudanglo (Montri la profilon) 2013-aŭgusto-29 12:39:51

or I get a trilled 'r' sound
What's wrong with that? Do you mean you overdo the trilling of the 'r'. If so that will pass with practice.

There is only the occasional word with double 'r' eg for-ruliĝi or for-remi.

Purrfecdizzo (Montri la profilon) 2013-aŭgusto-29 15:08:03

sudanglo:
or I get a trilled 'r' sound
What's wrong with that? Do you mean you overdo the trilling of the 'r'. If so that will pass with practice.

There is only the occasional word with double 'r' eg for-ruliĝi or for-remi.
Yeah, I mean that I overdo the trilling of the sound.

erinja (Montri la profilon) 2013-aŭgusto-29 16:11:34

This is a minor thing, it will pass with time. Better than no trill at all, don't worry about it too much.

Duko (Montri la profilon) 2013-aŭgusto-29 16:41:04

It's always a problem to get right a sound that either doesn't exist or is very different in your native language. When I detect a problem with pronunciation of a sound, I choose a word, preferably short and often used, that contains that sound. Then I try to get the word right and repeat it throughout the day until I can pronounce it better just by reflex. For instance in your case that could be "lernu" or "reta vortaro". Later, the pronunciation sort of carries over to other words.

Purrfecdizzo (Montri la profilon) 2013-aŭgusto-29 18:31:03

Duko:It's always a problem to get right a sound that either doesn't exist or is very different in your native language. When I detect a problem with pronunciation of a sound, I choose a word, preferably short and often used, that contains that sound. Then I try to get the word right and repeat it throughout the day until I can pronounce it better just by reflex. For instance in your case that could be "lernu" or "reta vortaro". Later, the pronunciation sort of carries over to other words.
I understand what you mean. My problem is that, right now, I absolutely cannot nail that sound in a word like 'farti'. I will just have to keep on trying, and eventually, I will nail it.

Purrfecdizzo (Montri la profilon) 2013-aŭgusto-29 18:32:01

erinja:This is a minor thing, it will pass with time. Better than no trill at all, don't worry about it too much.
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